Rotatable connector

ABSTRACT

A rotatable connector includes a mounting rod, and a rotatable mounting sleeve. The mounting rod has a plug, a shoulder and a concave neck portion. The plug is provided with a retractable positioning ball. The mounting sleeve has an inner wall formed with a receiving recess for rotatably receiving the plug. The receiving recess has a wall formed with a plurality of positioning grooves for locking and positioning the positioning ball. Thus, the rotatable connector can be operated linearly to have a torque output along its linear direction, and can be operated in an angular manner to have an angular torque output and to change its direction of operation.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0001] 1. Field of the Invention

[0002] The present invention relates to a rotatable connector, and more particularly to a rotatable connector, wherein the mounting rod is integrally combined with the mounting sleeve rigidly and stably without detachment, thereby facilitating operation of the rotatable connector.

[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art

[0004] A conventional rotatable connector in accordance with the prior art shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 comprises a mounting rod 40 having an end formed with a concave portion 42, and a drive head 41 rotatably mounted on the concave portion 42 of the mounting rod 40. Thus, the conventional rotatable connector can be operated linearly can be operated in an angular manner. However, the drive head 41 is easily detached from the concave portion 42 of the mounting rod 40 during operation, thereby causing inconvenience to the user. In addition, the drive head 41 is rotated on the concave portion 42 of the mounting rod 40 freely without providing any positioning device to retain the drive head 41, thereby causing inconvenience to the user in operation.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0005] The present invention is to mitigate and/or obviate the disadvantage of the conventional rotatable connector.

[0006] The primary objective of the present invention is to provide a rotatable connector, wherein the mounting rod is integrally combined with the mounting sleeve rigidly and stably without detachment, thereby facilitating operation of the rotatable connector.

[0007] Another objective of the present invention is to provide a rotatable connector that can be operated linearly to have a torque output along its linear direction, and can be operated in an angular manner to have an angular torque output and to change its direction of operation.

[0008] A further objective of the present invention is to provide a rotatable connector, wherein the positioning ball of the mounting rod can produce an urging force on the wall of the receiving recess of the mounting sleeve, thereby providing a positioning effect to the mounting sleeve during rotation of the mounting sleeve.

[0009] In accordance with the present invention, there is provided a rotatable connector, comprising a mounting rod, and a rotatable mounting sleeve, wherein:

[0010] the mounting rod has an end formed with a spherical plug, the mounting rod has a mediate portion formed with a shoulder and a concave neck portion located between the plug and the shoulder, the plug of the mounting rod has a periphery provided with a retractable positioning ball; and

[0011] the mounting sleeve has an end rotatably mounted on the plug of the mounting rod and having an inner wall formed with a receiving recess for rotatably receiving the plug of the mounting rod, the receiving recess of the mounting sleeve has a wall formed with a plurality of positioning grooves for locking and positioning the positioning ball of the mounting rod.

[0012] Further benefits and advantages of the present invention will become apparent after a careful reading of the detailed description with appropriate reference to the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0013]FIG. 1 is a side plan partially cross-sectional view of a conventional rotatable connector in accordance with the prior art;

[0014]FIG. 2 is a schematic operational view of the conventional rotatable connector as shown in FIG. 1 in use;

[0015]FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a rotatable connector in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention;

[0016]FIG. 4 is a side plan partially cross-sectional assembly view of the rotatable connector as shown in FIG. 3;

[0017]FIG. 5 is a schematic operational view of the rotatable connector as shown in FIG. 4 in use;

[0018]FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view of the rotatable connector in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0019] Referring to the drawings and initially to FIGS. 3-5, a rotatable connector in accordance with the preferred embodiment of the present invention comprises a mounting rod 10, and a rotatable mounting sleeve 20.

[0020] The mounting rod 10 has a first end connected to a motorized tool, pneumatic tool or a wrench (not shown), and a second end formed with a tetragonal spherical plug 11. The mounting rod 10 has a mediate portion formed with a tetragonal shoulder 12 and a concave neck portion 13 located between the plug 11 and the shoulder 12. The plug 11 of the mounting rod 10 has a periphery provided with a retractable positioning ball 14.

[0021] The mounting sleeve 20 has a first end formed with a mounting shaft 21 for mounting a socket (not shown), and a second end rotatably mounted on the plug 11 of the mounting rod 10. The second end of the mounting sleeve 20 has an inner wall formed with a receiving recess 22 for rotatably receiving the plug 11 of the mounting rod 10. The receiving recess 22 of the mounting sleeve 20 has a wall formed with a plurality of positioning grooves 221 for locking and positioning the positioning ball 14 of the mounting rod 10.

[0022] Preferably, the wall of the receiving recess 22 of the mounting sleeve 20 has a distal end formed with a tetragonal retaining portion 220, and the shoulder 12 of the mounting rod 10 is detachably fixed on the retaining portion 220 of the receiving recess 22 of the mounting sleeve 20.

[0023] The wall of the receiving recess 22 of the mounting sleeve 20 is formed with an annular retaining groove 222. The rotatable connector of the present invention further comprises a C-shaped snap ring 30 secured in the retaining groove 222 of the mounting sleeve 20 and mounted on the neck portion 13 of the mounting rod 10.

[0024] In assembly, the C-shaped snap ring 30 is initially mounted on the neck portion 13 of the mounting rod 10. Then, the plug 11 of the mounting rod 10 is inserted into the receiving recess 22 of the mounting sleeve 20, with the C-shaped snap ring 30 being snapped into the retaining groove 222 of the mounting sleeve 20, so that the mounting rod 10 is integrally combined with the mounting sleeve 20 rigidly and stably.

[0025] As shown in FIG. 4, the shoulder 12 of the mounting rod 10 is fixed in the wall of the receiving recess 22 of the mounting sleeve 20, and the positioning ball 14 of the mounting rod 10 is locked in one of the positioning grooves 221 of the mounting sleeve 20, so that the rotatable connector of the present invention can be operated linearly and has a torque output along its linear direction.

[0026] As shown in FIG. 5, the mounting rod 10 is pulled outward relative to the mounting sleeve 20, so that the shoulder 12 of the mounting rod 10 is detached from the wall of the receiving recess 22 of the mounting sleeve 20. In such a manner, the mounting sleeve 20 can be pivoted on the neck portion 13 of the mounting rod 10. Thus, the mounting sleeve 20 can be pivoted relative to the mounting rod 10, so that the rotatable connector of the present invention can be operated in an angular manner and has an angular torque output to change its direction of operation.

[0027] In addition, when the shoulder 12 of the mounting rod 10 is detached from the wall of the receiving recess 22 of the mounting sleeve 20, the positioning ball 14 of the mounting rod 10 is detached from the respective positioning groove 221 of the mounting sleeve 20, so that the mounting sleeve 20 can be rotated relative to the mounting rod 10 through 360 degrees. When the positioning ball 14 of the mounting rod 10 is detached from the respective positioning groove 221 of the mounting sleeve 20, the positioning ball 14 of the mounting rod 10 is compressed by the wall of the receiving recess 22 of the mounting sleeve 20 to produce an urging force on the wall of the receiving recess 22 of the mounting sleeve 20, thereby providing a positioning effect to the mounting sleeve 20 during rotation of the mounting sleeve 20.

[0028] Accordingly, the mounting rod 10 is integrally combined with the mounting sleeve 20 rigidly and stably without detachment, thereby facilitating operation of the rotatable connector of the present invention.

[0029] Referring to FIG. 6, a rotatable connector in accordance with another embodiment of the present invention is shown, wherein the plug 11A of the mounting rod 10A has a hexagonal spherical shape, and the wall of the receiving recess 22A of the mounting sleeve 20A has a hexagonal spherical shape mating with that of the plug 11A of the mounting rod 10A. In addition, the wall of the receiving recess 22A of the mounting sleeve 20A has a distal end formed with a hexagonal retaining portion 220A, and the shoulder 12A of the mounting rod 10A is detachably fixed on the retaining portion 220A of the receiving recess 22A of the mounting sleeve 20A. Further, the first end of the mounting sleeve 20A is formed with a hexagonal recess 21A for mounting a hexagonal driver head (not shown).

[0030] While the preferred embodiment(s) of the present invention has been shown and described, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications may be made in the embodiment(s) without departing from the spirit of the present invention. Such modifications are all within the scope of the present invention. 

1. A rotatable connector, comprising a mounting rod, and a rotatable mounting sleeve, wherein: the mounting rod has an end formed with a plug, the mounting rod has a mediate portion formed with a shoulder and a concave neck portion located between the plug and the shoulder, the plug of the mounting rod has a periphery provided with a retractable positioning ball; the mounting sleeve has an end rotatably mounted on the plug of the mounting rod and having an inner wall formed with a receiving recess for rotatably receiving the plug of the mounting rod, the receiving recess of the mounting sleeve has a wall formed with a plurality of positioning grooves for locking and positioning the positioning ball of the mounting rod; and the wall of the receiving recess of the mounting sleeve has a distal end formed with a retaining portion, and the shoulder of the mounting rod is detachably fixed on the retaining portion of the receiving recess of the mounting sleeve.
 2. (canceled).
 3. (canceled).
 4. The rotatable connector in accordance with claim 1, wherein the retaining portion of the mounting sleeve has a tetragonal shape, and the shoulder of the mounting rod has a tetragonal shape to mate with that of the retaining portion of the mounting sleeve.
 5. The rotatable connector in accordance with claim 1, wherein the wall of the receiving recess of the mounting sleeve is formed with an annular retaining groove, and the rotatable connector further comprises a C-shaped snap ring closely fit and secured in the retaining groove of the mounting sleeve and detachably mounted on the neck portion of the mounting rod.
 6. The rotatable connector in accordance with claim 1, wherein the plug of the mounting rod has a hexagonal spherical shape, and the wall of the receiving recess of the mounting sleeve has a hexagonal spherical shape mating with that of the plug of the mounting rod.
 7. (canceled).
 8. The rotatable connector in accordance with claim 1, wherein when the shoulder of the mounting rod is fixed on the retaining portion of the receiving recess of the mounting sleeve, the positioning ball of the mounting rod is locked in one of the positioning grooves of the mounting sleeve.
 9. The rotatable connector in accordance with claim 1, wherein when the shoulder of the mounting rod is detached from the receiving recess of the mounting sleeve, the positioning ball of the mounting rod is detached from the respective positioning groove of the mounting sleeve.
 10. The rotatable connector in accordance with claim 9, wherein when the positioning ball of the mounting rod is detached from the respective positioning groove of the mounting sleeve, the positioning ball of the mounting rod is urged on and compressed by the wall of the receiving recess of the mounting sleeve to produce an urging force on the wall of the receiving recess of the mounting sleeve, thereby providing a positioning effect to the mounting sleeve during rotation of the mounting sleeve. 